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Who's Who - Maximilian von Prittwitz

Maximilian von Prittwitz (1848-1929),
who was born in Silesia, served as commander of the German Eighth Army at
the outbreak of the First World War in August 1914, dispatched to East
Prussia to defend against a likely Russian invasion as documented in
Russia's war strategy,
Plan 19.

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A somewhat indecisive,
timid commander, defeat at the scrappy
Battle of
Gumbinnen led a panicked Prittwitz to order the withdrawal of Eighth
Army to the River Vistula, fearing encirclement by the Russian First and
Second Armies (the former of which, under
Rennenkampf, had
conducted the Russian defence at Gumbinnen), which had a combined
four-to-one advantage over Eighth Army in terms of size.

The order to withdraw
effectively abandoned East Prussia to the Russians; before the order was
executed he was recalled to Berlin by
Helmuth von Moltke,
the German Army Chief of Staff - essentially a dismissal.